Displaying items by tag: Fellowship of Prayer Strategists

Elizabeth Adleta from the Fellowship of Prayer Strategists reviews the encouraging progress that has been made since the Tokyo 2010 Unreached Peoples Intercession Task Force paper:

Ten years has passed since the paper was released in Tokyo, outlining the state of prayer for unreached people groups around the world, and proposing strategies to accelerate progress in reaching, discipling and seeing transformation among these. The task force not only worked but prayed. Ten years later, it is clear that God heard and responded!

In 2010, according to Joshua Project, well over 6,000 people groups had too few indigenous followers of Christ with sufficient means to evangelize their own people groups without outside assistance.  Less than 200 Christ-ward movements were known. Recently, researchers cataloged over 1,000 movements to Christ, where each spanned at least 4 generations, and the movements collectively represented over 785 people groups and 70 million believers! Research also indicates over 3,000 movement engagements in which a team (or teams) employs strategies seeking to multiply movements of believers! Robby Butler of MultMove has said, “Prayer is the first domino to fall” and in these past ten years more focused, fervent, and sustained prayer has grown within these movements and within the Church at large.

What has God done these past 10 years? What gaps still need to be addressed?

More partnerships have emerged in the prayer and missions movements, and these are converging. Prayers are being answered and partnering efforts are bearing fruit. Only recently have we seen networks, organizations, and denominations willing to collaborate outside their own boundaries. Prayer and mission leaders actively seek ways to better integrate their efforts. However, much ground remains to see these fully connected and coordinated.

Prayer strategists and prayer strategies have emerged. More than a ‘prayer coordinator’ or ‘facilitator’, prayer strategists serve on leadership teams in networks, organizations and denominations. They focus on maximizing and synchronizing prayer efforts at every level to best effect. Prayer is strategy, envisioning God-sized reality straight from His heart, and co-laboring to pray it into being under His direction. Incorporating both apostolic and prophetic vision allows leadership to keep their ears open to heaven as they evaluate options in light of God’s direction.

Advances in technology and communications offer innumerable ways to expand prayer and collaboration, even globally. Conferencing tools such as Zoom, social media platforms like WhatsApp, smartphone applications, live streaming services through internet, satellite and radio, and many other technologies have hardly been tapped into. Prayer communities are discovering that John 17-unity really can emerge as relationships deepen while praying, worshiping, and connecting over the internet. It is now possible to build relationships through these new technologies, serving to expand prayer efforts exponentially.

Annual prayer initiatives now include every major megasphere. 30 Days of Prayer for the Muslim World during Ramadan was only the beginning. After 25 years, we now see previously-unimaginable breakthroughs in the Muslim megasphere. The Hindu and Buddhist megaspheres have similar annual prayer initiatives. Prayer changes megaspheres!

Prayer is yearning for the now-but-not-yet Kingdom to fully come. God’s purposes for His Body are to grow up into the full measure of the stature of Jesus, who is coming back for a Bride equally-yoked with Him. God is calling the historical Church to match the passion, obedience, and zeal of fellowships emerging in movements; are we willing to pay a high cost to follow Jesus? As we see prayer and mission movements converging, God uncovers greater understanding, deepens our practice of intimacy, strengthens our fellowship with Him and one another, and increases our fruitfulness and joy. Maranatha! Come soon, Lord Jesus!

Download and read the full report HERE

Liz Adleta

Global Prayer Strategist

Fellowship of Prayer Strategists

www.prayerstrategists.net

Praise God for the acceleration and growing momentum of the many initiatives that are seeking to make God’s word available to all unreached people’s groups.

Praise God for the increased collaboration between those involved in catalysing prayer for the unreached. 

Pray for continued blessing on the work of the Fellowship of Prayer Strategists and their partner organisations.